Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections, Washington State University Libraries

Creator

Gleason, Jay Mark

Title

Jay Mark Gleason Papers

ID

Cage 26

Date [inclusive]

1933-1942

Extent

8 boxes.

General Physical Description note

4 linear feet of shelf space.

Language

English

Abstract

Correspondence, orders, official memoranda and notes re: his duties as chaplain, superintendent of chaplains, and welfare and public relations officer. Includes photographs collected for use in district yearbooks as well as copies of the yearbooks and other ephemeral Civilian Conservation Corps publications.

Preferred Citation note

Biographical/Historical note

Born in Illinois in 1881, Jay Mark Gleason had held a parish in Michigan and had been an Army Chaplain with the AEF in France before coming to Washington state as the pastor of the Ellensburg Presbyterian Church. He resigned his Ellensburg parish in 1921, and apparently tried ranching in the Yakima area for several years. A Yakima County district elected him to the State House of Representatives in 1932 and he served as a member of both the regular and special sessions of 1933. In early 1933, he became one of the thousands of Army reserve officers who were called to active duty to superintend the Civilian Conservation Corps. When the CCC became a permanent formation in late 1933, Gleason elected to remain at his job as district Chaplain for the Fort George Wright District, Spokane. He remained at that post until the liquidation of the CCC in 1942. Gleason died in the early 1950s in Edmonds, Washington.

Scope and Contents note

The papers of Captain Jay M. Gleason consist of his CCC correspondence, including orders and official memoranda, his diaries and notes, the yearbooks which he produced and the photographs he collected for the yearbooks, and various CCC ephemeral publications such as camp and district newspapers.

Conditions Governing Access note

This collection is open for research use.

Immediate Source of Acquisition note

The papers of Jay Mark Gleason, Captain, Chaplain-Reserve United States Army and District Chaplain, Fort George Wright District Civilian Conservation Corps, were donated to the Washington State University Library in 1958 by Captain Gleason's children, Mrs. Jean Gleason Witt of Edmonds, Washington and Mr. Bob Gleason of Des Moines, Washington.

Collection Inventory

Series 1: Correspondence and Personal Papers

Box

Folder

Correspondence. A chronologically arranged sequence of correspondence with CCC and Army officials, enrollees, personal friends and various political figures. The letters are concerned with all the phases of Gleason's work: clerical, social, administrative and publicity. 1933-1942

1

1-7

Orders and official memoranda. A chronologically arranged sequence of Gleason's orders concerning his appointment, reappointments, assignments, and travel. Official memos were from both Army and CCC superiors and are usually explanations of CCC policy. 1933-1942

Notes, anecdotes and clippings collected by Gleason for use in speeches, sermons, and papers. Drafts of some of Gleason's compositions are included. Also included are materials used for teaching a class in citizenship.

Series 3: Photographs

Box

Photographs collected for use in Yearbook or Pictorial Review. Most are photos of groups of enrollees, supervisory personnel, camp scenes, and work scenes. Many are partially identified and fuller identification is to be found in the printed yearbooks in folder 22.

5-9

Miscellaneous photographs, mostly of Command personnel and staff at Fort George Wright, many identified.